Method and apparatus for producing lettering



Aug. 25; 1942. E. J. OLEARY METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING LETTERING 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 17, 19:59

5;: 5Emmi; E: E 5.5: J fl: HW MHHPHW MHUHHHHHH J w fi %T .M H m i i i 3 g: g 1 1 mm 2 2J2Q m l l 7, oliisflkw T L: a a 71 j Patented Au 25, 1942 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING LETTERING Edward J. OLeary, Chicago, Ill. Application August 17, 1939, Serial No. 290,537

6 Claims.

My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for producing lettering particularly for use in connection with advertising layouts, and for use also in connection with catalogues and the like, and has particular reference to a quick and convenient method for producing lettering of various kinds, sizes and italicizing r backhand letters, also lettering in curved lines in a plurality of directions or in a reverse curve, if desired.

In connection with the preparation of advertising copy, it heretofore has been the practice to letter all of the material by hand for unusual spacings, unusual size of type, and particularly for curved lines of lettering, making the letters conform to the space which is available, Which is a laborious and tedious operation and oftentimes results in unequal spacing of the letters, and it is extremely difficult to produce letters of the proper size and character to fit into a particular space in a piece of advertising copy.

Through the use of my invention, copy can be prepared of letters of the exact size to fit into a particular space, which will be uniform in size, also uniform in spacing, and can be produced very quickly and easily to fit the needs of any particular situation.

Another and further object of my invention is the provision of means whereby lines of letters for advertising copy can be produced to extend in a curved direction now in common use as an eye-arresting means to attract attention to a particular advertisement, or to conform to the outlines of the article being advertised, as for instance, if the picture of the object is included in the advertisement, which picture is defined by curved lines, the line of lettering above the illustration of the article being advertised also is curved to conform to the curvature of the lines defining the object represented by the advertisement. All of this work heretofore has been done by hand by artists spending a great deal of time necessary to produce the proper curvature, size of lettering, spacing and the like, and when the hand job is complete it is oftentimes not uniform and is irregular both as to size of lettering and spacing, and altogether does not present a cleancut, sightly appearance in the advertisement.

Another and further object of my invention is the provision of apparatus by means of which the printing of various kinds and types of letters can be accomplished with a minimum of effort and can be provided very quickly, which can be fitted into a unit for final photographing for the purpose of producing the prints necessary for making up the plates for the running of advertising material in various publications or on the pages of catalogues and the like.

These and other objects of my invention will be more fully and better understood by reference to the accompanying sheets of drawings, in Which Figure 1 is a side view of apparatus employed in carrying out my invention;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the apparatus shown in Figure 1, and illustrating one of the steps in producing advertising copy;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the apparatus shown in Figure 2, illustrating the next step and showing pieces of material cut from the sides of the rubber band on which the printing appears;

Figure 4 is a top plan view of the apparatus illustrated in Figures 2 and 3, showing the band in partially elongated or stretched position;

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4, showing the band stretched to a farther degree than illustrated in Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a top plan view in which the curvature of the line of lettering is in a reverse direction to that heretofore described;

Figure 7 is a top plan view illustrating the method employed to procure a line of lettering appearing in the form of a reverse curve;

Figure 8 is a top plan view showing the method of securing lines of lettering of various sizes and also in italics and backhand, if desired; and

Figure 9 is a top plan View showing the blanket in a retracted position, showing the same lettering as indicated in Figure 8 but in smaller and contracted position.

Referring now specifically to the drawings and in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, I provide a frame l0 rectangular in form and having a base portion H extending entirely around the frame In, and having side rails l2 and I3 with end rails l4 and I5, Each of the side rails l2 and I3 have notches I6, I 6 formed therein at one end of the frame and extending throughout a greater portion of their length, these notches being in spaced relation with each other and in alignment with each other in a transverse direction, with a plurality of other notches I1 at the other end of the side rails l2 and I3 also in spaced relation with each other but inclined in a direction opposite to that of the inclination of the notches I6 so that the rolls hereinafter described as held in the frames will not slip out of the frame l0 during the oper ation of the apparatus.

' Mounted in the side rails I2 and I3 and normally positioned in the notches I! is a roller l8,

preferably having a rectangular portion 19 which extends transversely of the frame ll) between the side rails l2 and 13, with round spindles 20, 20

which allow for easy rotation of the roller 18.

Squared ends are provided for this roller upon which a crank, wheel or other means may be attached for turning the roller [8, if desired.

Mounted in the rails I2 and I3 and normally positioned in the notches I6 is a roller 2|, which is a duplicate of the roller I8 and which also has a squared portion 22 extending between the rails l2 and I3. Mounted upon the rollers l8 and 2! is a rubber blanket 23, this blanket being endless and made preferably of rubber or other elastic material of the proper surface to receive printing impressions thereon, as shown particularly in Figure 2. As shown in Figure 2, for purposes of illustration the word Commonwealth, identified by reference character 24, is shown thereon in the form shown on the blanket 23, being in a straight line position, this being the normal position of a proof which is applied to the surface of the blanket 23 by means of any type of printing press from which proofs can be made, such as the usual Washington hand press used for making proofs of various types and kinds in printing establishments.

In normal operation of the device, the printing is applied to that portion of the blanket 23 on the opposite side from that shown in Figure 2, and by rotating the rollers the printing material is brought around to a top position, as shown in Figure 2. When in this position if a straight line of lettering is desired of any particular size or length, the roller 2| is disengaged from its posi- 1 tion, and if smaller letters are desired the blanket, which has preferably been stretched somewhat or been placed under tension before the printing thereon is applied, is put in the position shown in Figure 3. This results in a contraction of the rubber blanket and a decrease in the size of the surface, and the letters therefore are reduced in size. If larger letters are required, the blanket 23 is stretched to the position desired, and the roller 2! turned back and forth a few turns to establish uniform tension throughout the blanket and the lettering is ready to be photographed. By positioning the roller 2! in various positions, the desired size of the letter is obtained, and a photograph is taken of the printing appearing on the surface and from a print obtained from the photographic negative the letters are applied in the proper set-up for photographing for the purpose of making the plate to reproduce the particular advertisement or page which is desired.

If a curved line of lettering is desired having the crown curved upwardly, the operator cuts from each of the side edges of the blanket 23 arcuate pieces of material 2 3 2 t along lines 25, 25. Thereafter the operator stretches the blanket 23 to say a position as shown in Figure 4, and the blanket after being stretched is rotated or moved slightly in each direction over the rollers l8 and 2! by merely rotating the rollers so as to establish uniform tension throughout the entire area of the blanket 23, in which position the length of the line of lettering is shortened and it is placed in a curved position, the crown of the curve extending in an upward direction.

If a line of lettering of greater curvature is desired, the blanket is stretched to a farther degree, as shown in Figure 5, and the rollers l8 and 2| rotated slightly to again establish uniform tension throughout the endless blanket 23, in which position the line of lettering is shortened to a greater extent and also the curvature is increased. The degree of curvature of the line of lettering also can be increased or diminished with the will of the operator, by taking greater or lesser arcuate cuts, such as 24 out of the sides of the blanket and then stretching the material to the point where the proper curvature is desired, depending upon the copy and the line of lettering photographed, so that a print of the proper lettering and proper curvature to fit into the desired design is easily and quickly produced.

In producing a curvature of the lettering in the opposite direction, in which the crown extends downwardly, particularly as illustrated in Figure 6, the strips of material 26, 26 are cut out of the material at the end opposite to that illustrated in Figures 3 to 5 inclusive, along the lines 21, 21, these arcuate pieces preferably being out out while the blanket is under less tension, such as illustrated in the position of the blanket in Figure 3, and thereafter stretched and the rollers rotated to secure an even distribution of the tension in the blanket, whereupon the line of lettering will assume a curved position in which the crown is downward, as shown particularly in Figure 6 of the drawings.

Varying amounts of tension on the blanket 23 produces a correspondingly varying degree of curvature in the line of lettering, and likewise a corresponding decrease in the size of the individual letters making up the line of printing desired. In this connection it is necessary of course to choose the proper size and kinds of type and also to determine by the skill of the operator how deep into the body of the material the arcuate out should be made, but there is considerable latitude allowed in the depth of this out because the variation in the depth of the out can be compensated for by the lengthflto which the blanket 23 is stretched prior to the photographing of the line of lettering appearing on the blanket 23. Ordinarily the layout material desired is furnished in the form of cut-out letters which are of the proper size and of the proper curvature desired in the final copy of the advertising material, and it is necessary for the operator only to match up this layout with the proof appearing on the blanket 23 until a proper size and curvature of lettering is obtained.

In Figure '7 of the drawings, the blanket 23 is shown stretched to substantially the full limit of the frame 10, and arcuate shaped portions 28 along lines 29, 29 have been removed. In this instance the arcuate portions are removed from each end of the blanket 23 above and below the line of printing prior to the stretching of the blanket 23, and thereafter when the blanket is stretched the line of printing assumes the general contour of a reverse curve, this type of lettering being particularly desirable as an eye-arresting and attractive device to focus the attention of the observer upon some particular word to which attention is desired to be directed in advertising material, or in some fashion to indicate motion of some particular part illustrated in an advertisement.

In Figure 8 is illustrated a method of taking proofs for letters appearing in diagonal directions and also in a longitudinal and transverse direction on the blanket, the lines of printing appearing in transverse and longitudinal lines of printing being desirable particularly to quickly secure lines of lettering to fit a particular space, which would not be possible with the ordinary sizes and kinds of type now in use. While the diagonal illustrations in Figures 8 and 9 show the means employed for obtainin both a forward slant to the line of lettering and also a typical backhand type of lettering which is also desirable as an eye-arresting and attractive device which is employed in advertising material and which has not been possible heretofore eX- cept through the use of hand formed letters by an artist or lettering artist, all of which takes a great deal of time and frequently results in uneven spacing of the letters because the artist has a prescribed amount of space within which to apply the lettering, and oftentimes it is necessary to crowd the last few letters or to space them farther apart in order to prevent an unsightly appearance of the line of lettering. Even when resort is had to these means, the line of lettering of course is not uniform and does not present the neat and sightly appearance of lettering produced by the method as described herein.

From the foregoing description it is believed that both the method and the operation of the device will be understood by those skilled in the art, and that its application also will be easily and quickly understood, in that the printing is applied to the blanket on the under side thereof, preferably by any ordinary hand press, and then the blanket turned to the position where the line of printing is visible from the upper side of the blanket, and the operator by cutting out of the blanket the various arcuate sections as heretofore described, can produce a line of printing curving in either direction or in a reverse curve, if desired, and at the same time control both the height of the letters and the length of the expression or line of letters necessary to fit into a particular space. In this manner ordinary and various sizes of type can be reduced or enlarged or extended into lines of Various directions, and photographed so that prints thereof can be obtained to be worked up into the final layout for the advertising material, and thereafter the whole layout photographed and the making of plates proceeded with in the manner commonly performed at the present time.

While I have described more or less precisely the details of construction, I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself thereto, as I contemplate changes in form and the proportion of parts and the substitution of equivalents as circumstances may suggest or render expedient without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention.

I claim:

1. A method of producing lettering which consists in printing the lettering on an endless band of elastic material while the endless band is mounted upon rollers under tension, fixing the tension on the band to produce the size of lettering desired, and revolving the rollers to produce uniform tension throughout the length of the band of elastic material.

2. A method of producing lettering which consists in impressing the lettering in a rubber band While under tension, cutting the rubber band on its edges, and placing additional tension on the rubber band to produce the contour of the line of lettering desired.

3. A method of producing lettering which consists in impressing the lettering in a rubber band while under tension, cutting arcuate sections from the band on its marginal edges, and placin additional tension on the band to produce the desired contour to the lettering.

l. In combination, a frame having side rails with a plurality of recesses therein in spaced relation with each other, an endless elastic blanket, and rollers upon which the said blanket is mounted adapted to fit into the said recesses.

5. In combination, a frame having side rails with a plurality of recesses therein in spaced relation with each other, an endless elastic blanket, and rollers upon which the said blanket is mounted adapted to fit into the said recesses, the said roller having squared sections upon which the said blanket is mounted.

6. In combination, a frame having side rails with a plurality of recesses therein in spaced relation with each other, an endless elastic blanket and rollers upon which the blanket is mounted, having their ends fitted into the said recesses, the said ends being round in cross-section and the section of the rollers upon which the blanket is mounted having angular corners thereon.

EDWARD J. OLEARY. 

